Transporting young kids in rideshare and for-hire vehicles

If you are a parent of young kids in California, you understand the challenges that come with transporting your children. Whether you have an infant in a car seat or a five year-old in a booster, you know it is the law that you need the proper seats and anchorage to drive them around in your personal vehicle. What about if you need to take a ride share, such as Uber or Lyft, or a cab? You may be less sure about the rules and laws surrounding this, but the bottom line is you need to keep your child safe.

According to Virginia Tech, using rideshare vehicles with kids is popular, with more than 33% of parents doing it. Unfortunately, both parents and drivers of these vehicles report that car seats are not always used. Some of the reasons for this non-compliance are the uncertainty of the law, the inability to request a seat from the rideshare driver and the bulkiness and size of a car seat makes it challenging to carry around.

What about riding in a cab? Some states exempt car seat usage in taxis and other vehicles for hire, but Parents reports that California does require car seats for kids younger than six in these vehicles. Ultimately, the parent is responsible for this, although the driver is in instances when the parent is not present. However, whether it is the law or not, the safety of their children should be the parents' priorities, which means using safety seats in all transportation situations.

The use of the Internet or this form for communication with the firm or any individual member of the firm does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Confidential or time-sensitive information should not be sent through this form.